L'Aiguilleur 1892

Editor: Here we have "L'Aiguilleur," a drawing from 1892 by Théophile Alexandre Steinlen, done in ink. There's a palpable sense of grim determination in the figure depicted. It almost feels like a visual metaphor for the struggles of the working class. What do you see in this piece? Curator: This image pulses with the weight of societal narratives. The signalman, a figure almost consumed by shadow, stands as a potent symbol. Consider how the railway itself had become, by the late 19th century, not just a mode of transport, but a symbol of modernity, industrial progress…and the human cost associated with that. Editor: So, the signalman is standing at some kind of industrial crossroads? Curator: Precisely! But what does this "crossroads" truly represent? It could signify individual destinies, or societal shifts; perhaps even the uncertain path of a nation grappling with rapid change. What about his specific tools of his work? Are they also symbolic in any way? Editor: It seems as though the levers could symbolize choice and responsibility, maybe the burden of decision-making… it seems he's trapped by his labour. Curator: Precisely. Steinlen is inviting us to reflect on not only progress, but its implications on the worker, through carefully selected and suggestive symbols, allowing him to tap into a collective cultural anxiety. We have become accustomed to the image of the city, yes? Editor: Definitely, it shows the rapid social and economic changes of that era with haunting visual cues. Curator: An era where anxieties of modernity, class disparity and progress became an intricate system of railway lines leading who knows where, each rail potent in the art of iconography.